Trends, Challenges & Emerging Solutions for Lithium Battery Logistics

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1 Trends, Challenges & Emerging Solutions for Lithium Battery Logistics An Industry Overview for the 2017 Labelmaster Dangerous Goods Symposium 8 September 2017 James Jones Director Product & Quality Management PA 2

2 State of Lithium Battery Industry Continued double-digit growth in Li-ion cell/battery production % CAGR %% CAGR Reflects maturation of some markets Ever cheaper cost per unit % decrease in cost per unit Continued increase in power storage (energy density) per unit 5-7% CAGR Mix of Li-ion battery production is changing Gigawatts non-automotive 25 Gigawatts automotive By 2020 Electric vehicle battery output will surpass all others 2

3 Lower Costs, More Power Per Unit & Many More Factories 3

4 Batteries Are Transported 4-6 Times Throughout The Lithium Battery Value Chain Raw Materials & Components Lithium Battery Manufacturers Transport & Distribution OEMs (Technology, Electric Vehicle, Energy Storage, Other (Industrial, Aircraft & Consumer) * Retail Transport & Distribution Warehouse / Regional Center Transport & Distribution End User Returns Transport Disposal & Recycling *OEMs have internal lithium battery value chains with additional battery transports. 4

5 Critical Issue Air Transport Safety Catastrophic fires/explosions on at least 3 cargo aircraft traced to lithium battery cargo Many other non-catastrophic lithium battery fires in cargo hold & in passenger compartment ICAO SAE G-27 Preliminary Draft Standards Five Deadly Sins Pressure Management* Fire Containment Flame Arrestment Blast & Ballistic Projectile Containment Flammable Gas Containment/Control Prevent Auto-ignition of Adjacent Packages *Implied for ascent, descent & flammable gas pressure pulse Recommended to ICAO DG late 2017? ICAO approval & implementation ? These standards will flow to other transport modes 5

6 Safety It s Not Just An Air Transport Problem Ground transport has a Li-ion battery safety problem, too. Li-ion battery fires on trucks and rail cars Seven (+) fires on major carrier trucks in last 12 months Union Pacific rail car fire in Houston, TX in April 23, 2017 Blast flung projectiles hundreds of feet & damaged nearby homes & businesses Why? Unit Volume Increase - More batteries shipped every year Energy density - More powerful batteries every year Increases blast & ballistic fragments Increases flame & flammable gas output 6

7 It s All About The Gas A single 8.88 Wh cell at 100% SOC generates 8 liters of gas 30% hydrogen 15-20% flammable hydrocarbons methane, ethane, acetylene, others 4 liters of flammable/explosive gas (2.4 hydrogen, 1.6 hydrocarbons) One 9-cell laptop battery can produce 36 liters of flammable gas (21.6 hydrogen, 14.4 hydrocarbons) Bonus hazardous gases include hydro chlorine, hydro fluorine & carbon monoxide No problem in open air Big problem in a contained space with no/limited ventilation 7

8 How Long Until Safer Batteries? 5 20 years; years is probable for commercially viable entrant It takes years to move from lab to manufacturing, AND All Li-ion battery replacements are chasing a moving target Cheaper every year More energy density every year Huge manufacturing investment Replacement cycle after commercial viability will require 5-10 years(+) Li-ion battery market momentum Huge installed base of Li-ion powered equipment 8

9 Emerging Lithium Battery Packaging Solutions: Two Design Approaches Worst case containment Design packaging that can contain a thermal runaway cascade that propagates to all cells/batteries in the package Burning all batteries is accepted Focus on containing thermal runaway hazards of flames, blast & ballistic projectiles inside the package Control thermal runaway spread Design packaging that limits the spread of thermal runaway cascade from the initiating cell/battery to adjacent cells/batteries Only burning of the initiating battery & 1 or 2 adjacent batteries is accepted Focus on reducing all hazards inside & outside the package by limiting thermal runaway propagation 9

10 Worst Case Containment Advantages Blast control Ballistic projectile control Flame arrestment Fire containment May prevent auto-ignition of adjacent packages Disadvantages No control of flammable gases No control of hazardous gases No control of particulates in battery smoke Greater HAZMAT clean-up requirements 10

11 Control Thermal Runaway Spread Advantages Blast control Ballistic projectile control Flame arrestment Flammable gas control* Hazardous gas control* Smoke filtering* Prevents auto-ignition of adjacent packages Reduced HAZMAT clean-up requirements *Direct effect in some In-direct effect in most Disadvantages All hazard controls dependent on effectiveness & speed of thermal runaway limitation method Packaging may not be robust enough to withstand full thermal runaway cascade if limitation fails Dangerous amounts of flammable & hazardous gases may be vented into cargo hold if limitation is slow or fails 11

12 Examples Worst case containment Various metal containers Various flame resistant or flame retardant materials reinforced with ceramic plates or other material with high ballistic resistance such as Kevlar or carbon fiber Ceramic coatings on corrugation Combinations of metal, Kevlar, carbon fiber or ceramic coated corrugation with Vermiculite pellets Control thermal runaway spread Intumescent coatings on corrugation Intumescent plastic Gel packs (some with flame retardant corrugation) Flame retardant & gas adsorbing silicone beads Thermal panels with flame retardant corrugation & gas adsorption 12

13 Thank You! James Jones Director Product & Quality Management PA 2 E: jjones@pa-2.com 13